Thought I would start a tool thread.

I bought this rivet removal tool a while back but hadn't used it much.
I decided to give it a good test while re skinning some flaps.
I like it!
It does take a little getting used to but can remove #3's in 3-5 seconds each.

Every shop should have these little guys too. Good for the cronies just learning and for the old guys too.

+1 on the rivet removal tool in post #1

A small 90 degree square or triangle held against the tool during drilling will help insure the bit goes through the center of the rivet o n most flat or near-flat surfaces.

The reason that this is an issue is because the old-school textbook method of rivet removal was originally designed for larger aircraft with much thicker sheet metal gauge parts. The old WW2 era method is to drill through only the head of the rivet (using this rivet tool or not), then chisel off the head, then use a punch to drive out the rivet stem from the hole. Works great when you have a heavy rigid structure (like a WW2 fighter). But when you try this method with a light structure (Cessna, Piper), you get a nasty surprise when you try to drive out the rivet stem with a pin punch. You wind up flexing and denting the aircraft structure instead of moving the rivet stem.

Soooo.... it winds up being easier to drill out the rivet entirely. Which now means that the hole you are drilling goes most or all the way through the rivet, which then means that if your drill axis is not aligned perfectly you can damage the hole and cause yourself a lot of grief.

Hence the advantage of having little 90 degree alignment tools that help keep the drill axis perpendicular to the surface, and (hopefully) perfectly aligned with the axis of the rivet.

That rivet remover looks good, might have to pick one of those up. My microstop countersink tool is a favorite, as is my Cleveland Main Squeeze.

The tight spot drill attachment:

http://www.mcmaster.com/#8787a14/=12eaf1o

It takes little shallow threaded shank drills and lets you really get into some tight areas.



If you're a [novice] TIG welder, this little mini grinder on your welding table or nearby makes grinding tungstens a snap (ignore the flex.)

http://www.harborfreight.com/bench-grin ... 43533.html

Sorry (and terrified) to disagree with the forum owner... BUT... that little 90 degree drill attachment is a disaster waiting to happen. Be really careful !

The angle attachment has one big Achilles Heel that can damage the crap out of an airplane. There is one axis of rotational movement (the little threaded drill bit axis), and one additional axis (the electric drill power axis). When using this extension, if the drill bit ever "bites" or grabs in a hole, the torque of the drill motor keeps trying to power the system, but the power is applied at a 90 degree angle to the resistance. So the entire collection of parts (drill motor, angle attachment, threaded drill bit) torques hard over to the side at a 45 degree angle between the two primary axes.

You cannot hold everything in alignment against this instant and unexpected force, you simply do not have enough hands. The result is an oval, goobered up hole that you didn't want, and it's probably in a difficult place to repair (you had to use a tiny angle attachment to drill it).

I learned this horrible lesson at the worst possible location, trying to carefully drill and ream through bulkheads where I really needed to have a perfect, clean hole.

The solution is very simple. Anywhere that the drill could grab or encounter resistance in heavy material, you need an angle drill that does not have that second degree of rotational freedom (where the hand drill motor attaches to the angle attachment). Although much more expensive than the little angle attachment, a proper aerospace angle drill will not have that "grabbing" and torquing problem, because the outer case of the tool does not rotate. That otherwise destructive torque is transmitted through the tool case into itself. You now have the right number of hands to keep everything aligned.

The little angle attachment is probably fine for really small holes, or using a countersink as a hole de-burring tool. But it absolutely torqued over and wrecked a main LG bulkhead in an otherwise undamaged airplane, and I was pretty upset about it. The sound of my throwing the Makita drill, with this little angle attachment, across the hangar, is what was mistakenly reported as a small earthquake in the LA area about 18 months ago.

My advice is to find a used small aircraft angle drill on eBay or wherever. That is what I did and I'm very happy I did.

EZFlap wrote:There is one axis of rotational movement (the little threaded drill bit axis), and one additional axis (the electric drill power axis).

Yeah, like any metal cutting operation, there's some assumption that one is not totally retarded and understands the forces at work. My 18V Makita won't exactly break my arm like my 120V Milwaukee hole shooter will. I've used this in scenarios where the chuck just won't fit, but the drill motor is in free space.

It's valuable to see others' fuckups documented though to avoid learning the hard way.

We did a lot of Cessna Elevator Control Post AD's with that exact 90 degree angel drill. It saved the day. Unreal tool when you really need it.

Zzz wrote:

EZFlap wrote:There is one axis of rotational movement (the little threaded drill bit axis), and one additional axis (the electric drill power axis).

Yeah, like any metal cutting operation, there's some assumption that one is not totally retarded and understands the forces at work. My 18V Makita won't exactly break my arm like my 120V Milwaukee hole shooter will. I've used this in scenarios where the chuck just won't fit, but the drill motor is in free space.

It's valuable to see others' fuckups documented though to avoid learning the hard way.

Agreed on all points. I have worn out one and am on my second: that thing is a life saver when needed.

-M3x

Here is one of my favorite. If you are installing a lot of nut plates, this will quickly become your best friend! It drills and countersinks both rivet holes at the same time. You just need to have the center hole drilled to size first. A huge time saver.

blackrock wrote:Here is one of my favorite. If you are installing a lot of nut plates, this will quickly become your best friend! It drills and countersinks both rivet holes at the same time. You just need to have the center hole drilled to size first. A huge time saver.

Sweet, but what's it cost

Tom wrote:

blackrock wrote:Here is one of my favorite. If you are installing a lot of nut plates, this will quickly become your best friend! It drills and countersinks both rivet holes at the same time. You just need to have the center hole drilled to size first. A huge time saver.

Sweet, but what's it cost

They come up on eBay occasionally. Usually in the $150 range, used. There are different sizes so be sure to get the right size.

Heck, one of my coolest tools is my trusty 'old school' Leatherman.

This is another one. Used the heck out of this for sheet metal work on the Bearhawk. Still comes in hand for a few projects a year. Yes, the sheer; the Kokanee came in handy after the work was done. [emoji4]

blackrock wrote:

Tom wrote:

blackrock wrote:Here is one of my favorite. If you are installing a lot of nut plates, this will quickly become your best friend! It drills and countersinks both rivet holes at the same time. You just need to have the center hole drilled to size first. A huge time saver.

Sweet, but what's it cost

They come up on eBay occasionally. Usually in the $150 range, used. There are different sizes so be sure to get the right size.

What's it called? I'm going to need to get me one. Got a link or anything

They are called Winslow Nut Plate Drills or sometimes just Winslow Guns. Just a quick web search turned up this 2009 video. I bought mine off of ebay, then sold it a few years later to another builder friend.

I work on airplanes for a living, although professionally it's jets, my hobby is the little airplanes and out of my entire snap-on box of tools, there are two simple tools that have saved me more headache and aggravation than anything else. I used to do a lot of road trips for work, fixing airplanes that were broke down AOG away from their home base, these two tools were the first thing I put in my bag:

First is what mechanics call the "husky tool", it's a 1/4 drive offset 90deg. ratchet and apex bit holder combo. Try and get one with a 12pt apex bit holder end so you can use it to remove 1/4in bolts with both 12pt heads (tons of them on Rolls Royce engines) or standard 6pt bolts. Both ratchets have very small detents so you can remove bolts/screws in hard to reach areas even when you have very little throw to swing the handle. I have heard the "husky" brand has changed their design in recent years and a started using cheaper ratcheting mechanisms but this is one tool I literally couldn't live without. Very slim, strong and polished, one of those tools that just has that "high quality" feel to it. Both the 1/4 drive ratche adapter and the apex pits are removable so you can use other tools with this gadget makes it a Swiss-army knife of sorts. I see they are sold as a "HBR5 ratchet".


The second is a bit of a cavemans tool but has also been invaluable. It's a 4130 chromoly steel skin spoon. It's edge should be sanded or filed smooth to "debur" it before use and since its 4130 steel it needs to be used with great caution as it can tear the hell out of aluminum or crush honeycomb if not used carefully but it's literally indestructible and can get into the smallest cracks to pry things apart that you just need that little bit of extra help like sealed down panels, Windows, antennas, skin seems whatever. you can stick the spoon under something 200 lbs, stand on the handle and it will pick up the item, these things are that strong. Every mechanics toolbox should have one or two of them.

Thanks Newbizor, those both look really handy. I'll have to put them on the shopping list!

Here is another screwdriver variant. the ratchet is actually a one way bearing.
No clicking, you flip it over to change direction.

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Here is a manual version of the "Winslow Gun".
I have a few older versions of these.